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Pangasius: new darling of the aquaculture industry


BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya – What sounds like a product of Pangasinan, tastes like the priced salmon, is more profitable to raise than tilapia, and now a common entry on the menus of classy restaurants? As the headline suggests, the answer is pangasius, a member of the catfish family that originated in Vietnam and now grown commercially in fishponds. Farmer Cesario Manuel of barangay Sta. Rita in Bayombong says the pangasius was the most profitable venture he has gone into so far after he harvested 1,076 kilograms of the from his three fishponds with a total area of 406 square meters. The three fishponds all exhibited good growth with a maximized stocking density of 3 pieces per square meter. The ratio is best for a high overall growth rate of 1 kilogram per body weight with some as high as 1.5 kilograms. With a taste and texture comparable to the salmon or even the Alaska pollack, pangasius is categorized as a ‘white meat fish’ and is in high demand not just in classy restaurants but in fast food chains as well. In Nueva Vizcaya, the project is the result of a joint undertaking of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Region 02 and the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist. Provincial agriculturist Felipe Panganiban said pangasius farming can be a very profitable project since the fish has a ready vast market in the Philippines and abroad. It is now acknowledged as the ‘new darling of the aquaculture industry." “The pangasius project is one way to attain higher fish sufficiency level for Nueva Vizcaya, “he said. At a farm gate price of P90 per kilogram and net gain of P36,500, studies show that pangasius culture is more profitable than tilapia raising. Production cost, however, is higher mainly due to the longer culture period of six months, and the cost of fingerlings. Dominador Abalos, project leader, said that production cost can be reduced as the fish can be fed with indigenous diet such as vegetable and fruit surplus and trimmings, kuhol and rice bran. A Nueva Ecija-based supplier of pangasius fingerlings, likewise confirmed that the cost is bound to go down once demand in the Cagayan Valley is sufficient enough to cover transport and logistics costs. Abalos said that the country currently imports forty 20-footer container vans of pangasius flesh each month. He said that pangasius fillet under the brand name Cream Dory costs 200 pesos per kilogram at local supermarkets. BFAR Regional Director Dr. Jovita Ayson said, “This project shows feasibility and profitability of pangasius culture in Cagayan Valley. It will be a big boost to the region’s fishery production and farmer’s income."